Bone drug Prolia can lead to fractures and bone death

(Health Secrets) One of the reasons the pharmaceutical industry wants everyone to be afraid of steroid hormones is that they are what sponsor production of sturdy flexible bones. Replacement hormones that exactly replicate those made in the human body cannot be patented, and the only way Big Pharma can cash in is by selling bone drugs such as Prolia made by Amgen. Prolia is designed to lower risk of fractures in post-menopausal women, but there are a couple of problems – this drug may lead to worse bones, and it carries a significant risk of actually causing bone death of the jaw as well as weaker, more brittle bones. Of course, this is what the drug was designed to prevent. And that isn’t all of the bad news.

The drug is designed to address bone resorption and bone formation, which is a natural and essential process that rebuilds bone structure by removing old bone components (resorption) and replacing them with new ones via bone formation. This is what goes on in healthy pre-menopausal women who have optimal hormone levels. Low levels of the hormones estrogen and progesterone in post-menopausal women cause bone to be broken down more quickly than it can be replaced. As a result, such women often have weak, brittle bones and higher susceptibility to breaks and fractures.

Prolia is a so-called monoclonal antibody – a lab-produced antibody that inactivates the body’s bone-breakdown mechanism. Like biophosphate bone drugs, Prolia targets the body’s ability to break down bone components. Prolia does this by targeting a chemical signal in the body called RANK ligand, which is an essential part of the body’s natural process for breaking down bones. The idea is that by slowing the process down, bones will lose less bone mass and be less brittle. While the idea looks good on paper, it can be fraught with danger in actual practice.

A WebMD article described the way Prolia works: “The drug slows the bone-breakdown process — but also slows the entire bone-remodeling process. Over the long term, it’s not yet clear what this will mean.”

The problem is that suppression of bone breakdown may lead to bone formation outstripping bone breakdown, and this has happened with Fosamax and other biophosphate bone drugs. With the other bone drugs, new bone formation often produces unnatural bone growth and results in bones that are actually more susceptible to fractures and abnormalities. Even worse, the bone drugs have caused more dangerous conditions, including bone death of the jaw and spinal paralysis.

If you take Prolia, there are no assurances that it will not lead to the same kind of problems. As the FDA’s own press release warns, “Prolia causes significant suppression of bone turnover and this suppression may contribute to the occurrence of osteonecrosis of the jaw, a severe bone disease that affects the jaw, atypical fractures, and delayed fracture healing.”

Osteochronosis, which literally means bone death, is one of the more severe side effects that have been reported for all the bone drugs. And, as if bone death of the jaw were not enough of a concern, several disconcerting side effects were observed in Prolia’s clinical trials.

As WebMD reported, “In clinical trials, women taking Prolia had a higher risk of serious infections leading to hospitalization, including heart infections. Skin reactions such as dermatitis, rashes, and eczema also were reported.”

Some of the other side effects include:

Back pain

Pain in the extremities

Musculoskeletal pain

High cholesterol levels

Urinary bladder infections

Lowered levels of calcium, an essential mineral for healthy bones

So there you have it, yet another unnatural Big Pharma drug whose side effects may far outweigh its benefits. This comes while the real safe alternative is to replace lost hormones that can produce strong, healthy bones for the rest of life.

Author: Tony Isaacs

Tony Isaacs, is a natural health advocate and researcher and the author of books and articles about natural health, longevity and beating cancer including "Cancer's Natural Enemy". Mr. Isaacs also has The Best Years in Life website for baby boomers and others wishing to avoid prescription drugs and mainstream managed illness and live longer, healthier and happier lives naturally. He is currently residing in scenic East Texas and frequently commutes to the even more scenic Texas hill country near San Antonio and Austin to give lectures in health seminars. Mr. Isaacs also hosts the CureZone "Ask Tony Isaacs - featuring Luella May" forum as well as the Yahoo Health Group "Oleander Soup". He is working on a major book project due for publication later this year. Mr. Isaacs and his partner Luella May can be heard live every Wednesday evening on "The Best Years in Life Radio Show".